Feeling Accepted
Recently I watched for a second time a fun movie, Accepted. For those unfamiliar with it, the premise of the movie is a young man graduating high school gets rejected by every college he applies to and his parents don’t take it well. In desperation he cleverly creates a fake college with some friends and…well, I don’t want to ruin it. It’s a fun movie and if you’re interested in a light humorous evening of movie watching, it’s a good choice.
Of course, this isn’t a movie review per se. It was certain aspects of the movie I found particularly relevant to the focus of much of my writing, self-education. Two themes that emerged during the movie immediately resonated with me.
- Most of the current college and university education approach is founded upon a worship of standardization and a one-size-fits-all mentality.
- Anyone with a passionate desire to learn can do so and traditional schooling need not be the means by which they do that.
I take great care not to disrespect all higher educational institutions because that would be foolish. There are some wonderful places, some wonderful teachers, and many students for whom the college experience is a good option. One of my guiding life principles is diversity – honoring the uniqueness of everyone – that when applied to education must naturally lead to a belief that there are as many ways to properly educate people as there are people.
Higher education is at a crisis point though. Tuition is increasing at alarming rates while at the same time educational institutions are struggling with funding issues. The rigidity of the traditional education methods can’t keep up with a body of knowledge and skills that grows exponentially each year and will continue to do so with increasing speed. An educational system that was founded to foster the growth of the industrial age has yet to adequately give way to the realities of the information age.
Self-education, informal learning or whatever you want to call it must be part of the present and future education solution. I do not believe our schools, by their very nature, can themselves satisfy all of the education needs of individuals and society.
It’s important for people to stop entering into college and university programs simply because it’s what we do to feel accepted and normal. Education is what’s important, not how we attain it. Learning that improves us and our lives is what’s important, not a piece of paper certifying such learning. Knowledge and information that contributes to the betterment of individuals and society is worthy of pursuit, not an academic résumé for its own sake.
Dauphine
May 14, 2013 at 1:52 pmI sometimes regret that I never pursued a bachelor’s degree and have sometimes been asked why during job interviews. The bottom line is that an associate’s degree supplemented with military training has served me well. I was not prepared for a four-year college when I graduated high school and agree to attend a junior college to appease my mother. When I became bored with the career my two-year degree afforded me, I chose to join the Air Force Reserve. There I learned skills no four-year university could have taught me.
Many people I know are not working in the field for which they have a degree–or, are not working at all. Some friends have never finished their degree program because they were pressured into a field of study by their parents. And others are strapped with huge student loan debt. There are too many options these days to leap into the cookie-cutter experience of a university education.
Just this week I listened to a colleague lament the fact that his son chose not to attend a four-year university directly from high school. “He’ll never have the advantages that I had,” he stated emphatically. “True, but he may be happier for it,” I responded.